Asian carp

noun

plural Asian carp also Asian carps

: any of several freshwater, cyprinid fishes (such as the grass carp or silver carp) that are native to Asia and were introduced into U.S. waters where they have spread widely and are considered detrimental to native fish stock due to their voracious appetite and rapid rate of reproduction

There are four different species of Asian carp: Silver, bighead, black and grass. While their appearances differ slightly depending on the species, they generally are a heavy-bodied fish recognizable by their upturned jaw—like an underbite—and the eyes on the lower half of their heads.

—Sarah Bowman

Asian carp originally were imported from Southeast Asia to the U.S. to help clean fish farm retention ponds in the South. But flooding and accidental releases in the 1970s allowed them to migrate up the Mississippi River system.

—Angela Bauer

called also copi

Word History

First Known Use

1967, in the meaning defined above